Simone Bridges' guide for kids eating in San Francisco

February 26, 2015April 23, 2015

Chiaroscuro (Financial District)

Ratings:

Review Summary:I went to awesome Italian food at Chiaroscuro for last night’s Wednesday Grandpa Party night. My dad found parking in this super cool neighborhood (where foodies like me are starting to hang out), and I passed the Mayor on the street as we walked into Chiaroscuro! I am not sure if the Mayor knows who I am yet, but I did give him a shout on Twitter last night.

Ok, let’s get down to this kid’s food experience. First, Saulo, the manager, surprised me with a lovely chat as he told me about the history of the restaurant. I sat at a beautiful booth with lots of room to stretch out and I started the meal with an amuse-bouche that I just loved–it was like fried mushroom risotto. My mom and I realized that there was no kid menu, and I got the feeling that not many kids dine here, which is a shame really, because I adore this place and other kids would too! Mom said that not having a kids menu was completely fine because the chefs were great about letting me order anything off the menu (and I didn’t have to order the entire prefix menu). Plus, this is Italian food, which typically makes this kid happy! After reading the menu (with a little help with the tricky words), I quickly decided to try the vanilla bean tortellini with oxtail! Well to be honest, I wasn’t sure about oxtail, but it turns out that I love it! My pasta was great, and I also ate 3 of the house-made breads, which were delicious (last night’s bread was a simple sea salt bread). In short, kids, don’t be afraid of Chiaroscuro! Although the menu looks tricky, the food is awesome, and the service was lovely to me! It is also neat to watch the chefs do their work because there is an open kitchen here! Moving on to dessert, go for the gnocchi with chocolate! The fried ricotta gnocchi was warm and yummy and the chocolate was rich.

Mom’s Thoughts (for what they’re worth):
My mom also loved this Italian food and the mostly-Italian wine list. She said that our server, Anna, was extremely helpful and made thoughtful suggestions, and that this is a great place for family time. My mom thinks that meals should be long and involve lots of talking (which is usually ok with me, but last night I had to play with dad’s iphone to keep my body still) so she really likes how this restaurant never feels rushed–it’s all about food and family.

I give Chiaroscuro two and a half bridges!! Kids, take your parents here soon for some slow family time!